/y  yrv    ' 


)RY 


l-ll  I 

Inited  States  Department  of  Agriculture, 

BUREAU     OK     PLANT     INDUSTRY, 

Western   Irrigation   Agriculture, 

WASHINGTON.    D.  C. 


THE  WORK  OF  THE  UMATILLA  RECLAMATION 
PROJECT  EXPERIMENT  FARM  IN  1913. 

By  R.  W.  A 1 1  en,  Collaborator. 


INTRODUCTION. 

The  experiments  carried  on  at  the  Umatilla  Experiment  Farm  in 
1913  followed  the  same  general  lines  as  those  conducted  in  191?,  as 
reported  in  a  previous  publication.1  On  account  of  the  small  size 
of  the  farms  on  the  Umatilla  project  which  contain  an  average  of 
aboul  ;'>i>  acres  of  irrigable  land  it  is  accessary  thai  systems  of 
intensive  agriculture  be  established.  The  climatic  conditions  on 
the  project  are  well  >niteil  to  the  production  of  certain  truck  crops 
and  fruits  and  to  daily  farming.  One  of  the  first  requirements 
of  successful  crop  production  on  this  project  is  to  increase  the  supply 
of  organic  matter  in  the  soil,  BO  as  to  improve  the  water-holding 
capacity  and  productivity  and  to  lessen  the  danger  of  wind  erosion, 
[t  i-  necessary  also  thai  crop  varieties  suited  to  the  conditions  on  the 
project  be  found  and  that  satisfactory  methods  be  worked  out  for 
handling  the  >oil  and  the  irrigation  water. 

Since  its  establishment  in  1909,  the  Umatilla  Experiment  Farm 
has  been  devoted  to  the  Investigation  of  these  problems.  The  work  of 
the  farm  has  been  mainly  horticultural  and  is  at  present  confined 

'  The  I'matill.i  Kxprriment  Finn  is  located  on  the  I'matiHa  Reclamation  Project,abaBl  2  nn. 
ofHermiston.Oi  ind  withdrawn  from  en  try  in  190t  D       •••nmt 

of  the  In;  experiment  farm.    It  is  maintained  by  tl  I  cperimect 

n  an.i  operand  hi  cooperation  with  the  Boreaa  of  ■       •  pi  of 

ulture,  un. ler  a  cooperative  agreement.    Oper.it inns  were  began  In  WW.     The  bu  I  were 

■  .1  by  the  I'nl  Reclamation  Sen  ice  and  by  thi 

The  expenses  of  the  firm  are  shared  eqaally  by  Uu 

ulture.    The  in.  .  is  under  the  immedu' 

if  of  the  Bureau  o(  Plant  Inrt  . 
i,R.W      Th>- work  o'ttie  rmatilla  Kxpcrimem  Farm  in  P.M.  Ilureaii 

I  Tircular  129.  p.  2W2,  1913. 

-14 


chiefly  to  testing  varieties  of  fruits  and  truck  crops  and  to  investigat- 
ing methods  of  producing  these  crops,  including  methods  of  irriga- 
tion. The  present  publication  contains  a  brief  discussion  of  the 
progress  of  the  work  during  the  year  1913. 


CONDITIONS  ON  THE  PROJECT. 


CLIMATIC  CONDITIONS. 


Measurements  of  precipitation,  evaporation,  wind  velocity,  and 
temperature  have  been  made  at  the  experiment  farm  in  cooperation 
with  the  Biophysical  Laboratory  of  the  Bureau  of  Plant  Industry 
since  September,  1911.  A  summary  of  the  climatologies!  observations 
for  the  three  years  is  given  in  Table  I. 

Table  I. — Summary  of  climatologicul  observations  «t  tin    Umatilla  Experiment  Farm 
from  1911  to  1918,  inclusive. 

Precipitation  i'Inchi 


Year. 

Hem. 

Jan. 

Feb. 

Mar. 

Apr.    May. 

June.  July. 

Aug. 

Sept. 

Oct. 

Nov. 

Dec. 

An- 
nual. 

1911.. 

0.55 
.10 
.16 

0.46 

.29 

1.43 

0.48 

.54 

1.20 

0.50 
.13 
.62 

1912 

1913 

2.22 
1.69 

0.67 

.57 

0.49 
.23 

6.61      1.25 

.34      1.72 

0.97 
.78 

0.  05 
Tr 

1.18 

.52 

8.50 
9.26 

Average. 

1.95 

.57 

.36 

.47 

1.48       .87  1     .02  1     .85 

.27 

.72 

.74 

.41 

Evaporation  (Inches). 

1912.. 

(') 
(') 

(') 
(') 

1.98 

3. 98     5.  21 
3.70     5.85 

7.51      8.23     5.68 
5.90     8.53  I  7.13 

3.87 
5.06 

2.98 
2.06 

.78 
.70 

.25 
(') 

38.50 

1913.. 

40.9 

3. 84     5. 53 

6.70      8.33 

6.36 

4.46 

1.47 

.74 

Da 

i.v  W 

-nd  Velocity  (Miles  per  Hour). 

1911 

5.2 
3.8 
3.0 
13.2 

9.7 

7.0 

1  .8 

.8 

.5 

5.6 

2.5 

2.2 

13.7 

9.5 

8.2 

1.4 

.5 

.4 

3.5 

3.5 

2.3 

19.8 

12.3 

8.3 

.8 

.6 

.4 

5.5 

1.7 

2.1 

14.  s 

5.1 

11.5 

.7 

.7 

.5 

3.8 

4.3 

1.2 

16.2 

15.4 

3.3 

.8 

.5 

.3 

1912.. 
1913.. 
1911.. 

do 

do 

Maximum... 

2.5 
3.1 

4.0 
2.5 

3.3 

4.7 

2.5 
5.2 

3.1 

3.7 

5.3 
4.5 

4.4 
3.8 

3.4 
3.3 
19.8 

1912. . 
1913.. 

1911.. 

....  do 

do 

Minimum. . . 

8.7 
15.3 

12.7 
6. 9 

16.9 
13.9 

15.7 
14.2 

10.5 
11.8 

13.  6 
9.8 

11.5 
11.9 

16.9 

15.3 

.8 

I'll  2.. 
1913.. 

do 

....  do 

1.2 

.8 

.9 
.5 

1.3 
1.0 

1.1 
1.4 

.9 
1.1 

.9 
1.3 

1.2 
.9 

.5 
.3 

Monthly  Temperature  (°F.). 

1911    . 

54 
59 
60 
79 
87 
91 
28 
32 
31 

4^ 
4-* 
50 
89 
78 
81 
15 
23 
26 

37 
42 
43 
66 
62 
65 
9 
20 
25 

34 
35 
31 
55 

tit 
51 

12 
12 

7 

1912.. 
1913.. 

do 

do 

29 
30 

40 
23 

41 
45 

52 
53 

61 
59 

69 
68 

72 
74 

69 
83 

1911 

1912.. 

rlo 

52 

66 

58 
60 

71 
64 

78 
86 

91 

87 

1114 
97 

102 
105 

102 
103 

104 

1913.. 

do 

105 

1911 

1912.. 

do 

18 
0 

lti 
-  6 

15 
19 

26 
26 

35 
34 

43 

44 

48 
44 

41 

42 

-18 

1913 

do 

-  6 

1  Record  incomplete,  owing  to  freezing  of  water. 


3 

The  dates  of  the  last  spring  frosts  and  firsl  autumn  frosts  from  1909 
to  I'M  I ,  inclusive,  were  obtained  from  the  local  office  of  the  Reclama- 
tion Service  al  Hermiston,  aboul  2  miles  from  the  experiment  farm 
In  L912  and  L913  the  observations  were  made  at  the  farm.    These 
lata  t"i"  the  five  years  1909  to  1913,  inclusive,  are  given  in  Table  IT. 

T  Mil   I.     II  /', 


'  HUM 

- 

Minimum 
torn] 
t  ■•  r  .■ 

Oct.    10 

Minimum 
tern] 

1  r..  ' 

•••1 

Apr     21 

Apr     20 
Apr     16 
Apr     23 

;i 

178 

1910 

1011 

1012 

M.KICI   1.11   IHI.    (  DNIIII  KIN.-, 


The  Beason  of  1913  was  especially  favorable  for  crop  production, 
the  number  of  heavy  winds  and  hoi  days  being  relatively  few.  A 
hot  v,  ave  w  hich  occurred  late  in  July  checked  temporarily  the  growth 
of  the  more  tender  crops  of  the  project,  but  was  nol  serious.  A  lighl 
frost  occurred  on  September  24,  In  it  did  very  little  damage.  Continu- 
ous cold  weather  did  not  begin  until  unusually  late,  so  thai  fall-planted 
crops  had  very  favorable  growing  conditions. 

In  1913  the  total  irrigable  area  of  the  .'!ll  farm-,  on  the  project 
was  10,092  acre-.  Of  this,  an  area  of  1,994  acre--  was  actually  irri- 
gated.    The  average  irrigated  area  per  farm  was  aboul  16  acres.     Of 

the  land  actually  irrigated,   an    area    of    1,961    acres   was  devoted   to 

young  orchards,  newly  -ceded  alfalfa,  rye  for  green  manure,  and  other 
crops  not  harvested,  so  thai  the  total  area  from  which  crop-  were 
harvested  was  3,033  acres.  This  area  was  about  200  aero  less  than 
the  area  harvested  in  1912.  The  average  farm  value  per  acre  of  all 
the  crops  on  the  project  was  $27.72  in  1913,  a-  compared  with  $24 
in  1912.  The  acreage,  yields,  and  farm  values  of  the  crops  grown 
on  the  project  in  1913  are  -tated  in  Table  III,  the  figures  being  ob- 
tained from  the  United  Stale-  Reclamation  Service. 


Table  III. — Acreage,  yields,  and  farm  values  of  crops  grown  on  the   Umatilla  project 

in  WIS. 


Crop. 


Alfalfa  hay 

Clover  hay 

Other  hay 

Apples 

Apricots 

Artichokes 

Corn 

Corn  fodder 

Watermelons 

Fruit,  small 

Grapes 

Garden 

Onions 

Pasture 

Peaches 

Potatoes 

Less  duplications. 


Area 

(acres). 


Total 3,033 

Average  value 


2,024 

20 

42 

11 

6 

9 

56 

76 

13 

36 

91 

59 

3 

496 

87 

83 

79 


Unit  of 

yield. 


Ton.... 
..do... 
..do... 
Pound . 
..do... 
Ton. . . . 
Bushel. 
Ton.... 
Pound. 
..do... 
..do... 


Yield. 


Per  acre. 


Total. 


Aver- 
age. 


Maxi- 
mum. 


Farm  value. 


Per 

unit  of 
yield. 


8,010 

34 

38 

1,800 

4,320 

119 

1,088 

212 


3.96 

1.7 

.90 

163.6 

720.0 

13.2 

19.  43 

2.79 


Bushel.. 


Pound. 
Bushel. 


139,000  10,692 
22,141  615 
38,820        426.6 


436 


145.3 


62, 200 
7,538 


715.0 
90.8 


10 

4 

2 

800 

1,600 

25 

85 

8 

16,000 

5,760 

25,000 


Total. 


600 


6,000 
533 


$8.00 

7.35 

6.00 

.04 

.05 

10.00 

.84 

3.75 

.075 

.09 

.02 


.50 


.022 
.64 


$64,  OHO 

250 

228 

72 

216 

1,170 

914 

795 

1,042 

1,993 

776 

2,835 

218 

3,297 

1,368 

4,824 


Per  acre. 


Aver- 
age. 


$31.66 
12.50 

5.43 

6.50 
36.00 
132.00 
16.32 
10.45 
80.15 
55.33 

8.53 
48.05 
72.67 

6.65 
15.72 
58.12 


»4,07S 


.      27. 72 


Maxi- 
mum. 


$80.00 
29.40 


32. 00 

330. 00 
250.00 


300.00 
i32.'66 


MARKETING   CONDITIONS. 


Marketing  conditions  on  the  project,  while  somewhat  better 
than  in  1912,  were  not  entirely  satisfactory.  The  first  peach  crop 
was  harvested  and  marketed  at  considerable  disadvantage,  owing 
to  its  not  being  of  sufficient  size  to  warrant  the  assembling  of  carload 
lots  and  to  the  glutted  condition  of  local  markets.  Early  potatoes, 
which  could  not  be  disposed  of  in  1912',  brought  a  fair  price  early 
in  the  season  of  1913,  but  a  quick  decline  made  it  impossible  to 
dispose  of  all  the  crop  at  profitable  prices.  Watermelons  shipped  in 
carload  lots  brought  as  much  as  three-fourths  of  a  cent  a  pound.  The 
distance  to  market  makes  it  important  for  fruit  and  vegetables  to  be 
shipped  regularly  and  in  uniform  condition,  which  is  impossible 
without  a  local  organization  to  assemble  and  grade  the  products 
before  shipping.  Such  an  organization  could  also  prevent  wasteful 
competition  between  neighbors  in  the  nearer  markets. 

The  rapid  increase  in  the  number  of  dairy  cattle  on  the  project 
made  it  possible  to  dispose  of  a  large  part  of  the  1913  crop  of  hay 
by  feeding  it  on  the  farms.  The  prices  thus  obtained  were  higher 
than  those  previously  received  for  the  hay.  The  output  of  the 
local  creamery  increased  270  per  cent  during  the  10  months  since 
it  began  operations.  A  total  of  83,285  pounds  of  butter  was  manu- 
factured during  this  time  and  an  average  of  35  cents  per  pound 
was  paid  for  butter  fat.  An  increased  area  of  land  was  pastured 
by  hogs  and  the  returns  were  far  above  the  commercial  value  of  hay 
which  the  pastured  land  would  have  produced.  The  hay  crop  sold 
out  early  at  $6.50  to  $7  in  the  stack  and  $9  to  $9.50  baled  and  loaded 


on  care  for  shipment.     The  demand  for  baled  ha)   continued,  and 
tlw>  price  mix  anced  to  tl  I  per  ton  later  in  the  season. 

i  ELD  I  \i'i  MMEN  ra 

The  principal  lines  of  work  along  which  experiments  were  con 
ducted  on  the  farm  in  1913  are  as  follows:     i     The  testing  <>f  frail 
varieties  and  methods  of  their  production :  (2)  the  testing  "f  \  arieties 


L .         U_ 


d 


G 


mm  w 


FERTILIZER 

T~ 


TE5T 


VEGETABLES 


t« 


-. 


SOIL       '  FERTILITY 

I   IN 
PPLE  ORCHARD  , 


,      , !      r 

Ki...  I.    i>ui»cnun  of  the  Umatilla  Experiment  Farm,  showing  the  anangemi  nt  ol  the  fields  and  the 

cperimenta  ta 

of  garden  and  truck  crop-;  :;  experiments  with  methods  of  increasing 
the  supply  of  organic  matter  in  the  soil;  (4)  the  testing  of  a  number  of 
green-manure  crop-  and  methods  of  handling  them;  (5)  growing 
numerous  hardy  trees  and  shrubs  to  find  their  value  for  ornamental 
purposes  and  as  windbreaks;  and  (6)  continued  testing  of  different 
irrigation  methods.  The  arrangement  of  the  fields  and  the  locutions 
of  the  experiments  in  1913  are  shown  in  figure  l. 


Some  valuable  results  have  been  obtained  from  these  experiments, 
and  some  of  the  more  important  are  briefly  reviewed  here.  The 
results  of  these  experiments  are  in  most  cases  not  given  as  final, 
but  as  a  statement  of  the  progress  so  far  made.  The  methods  of 
tillage  have  in  no  case  been  other  than  can  be  followed  by  any  farmer 
on  the  project. 


EXPERIMENTS  WITH   FUI  ITS. 


Variety  tests  of  tree  fruits. — The  principal  experiments  with  fruits 
are  tests  of  varieties,  of  which  but  few  have  as  yet  fruited.  The 
success  in  starting  trees  and  their  subsequent  growth  have  varied 
greatly  with  the  different  kinds. 

Practically  all  varieties  of  apples  have  been  found  to  be  hardy 
and  have  made  a  fair  growth.  The  hardy,  large-growing  varieties, 
such  as  Mcintosh,  Winesap,  and  Gravenstein,  and  the  Transcendent 
crab  have  grown  more  rapidly  than  others  under  similar  conditions. 
The  Hyslop,  Martha,  and  Yellow  Siberian  crab  apples  blossomed 
in  their  fourth  year,  1913,  showing  a  tendency  toward  early  fruiting. 

The  growth  of  the  pear  varieties  has  been  very  slow,  but  was  much 
better  in  1913  than  previously.  Their  behavior  indicates  that  they 
require  considerable  time  to  get  established  when  set  out  on  new  land. 
Quinces  have  behaved  much  the  same  as  pears. 

The  growth  of  prunes  and  plums  shows  a  wide  range  of  adaptability 
between  different  varieties.  The  Peach  plum,  Sergeant  (Robe  de 
Sergeant),  Lombard,  and  Maynard  are  quite  hardy  and  have  grown 
rapidly,  attaining  in  four  years  a  height  of  6  to  10  feet.  Some  of  the 
better  commercial  varieties  of  prunes  are  more  difficult  to  grow, 
especially  the  Italian  (Fellenberg)  and  Hungarian. 

The  variety  test  of  cherries  is  located  on  a  steep,  south  exposure. 
The  growth  of  the  trees  has  been  very  slow,  and  several  trees 
have  died.  The  sour  varieties  of  the  Duke  and  the  Morello  groups 
appear  to  he  more  hardy  than  the  sweet  varieties  of  the  Heart  and 
the  Biggareau  groups.  In  1913  several  varieties  blossomed  early 
and  set  a  large  amount  of  fruit,  which  was  removed  to  relieve  the  trees. 

The  peach,  nectarine,  and  apricot  trees  are  also  located  on  a  steep 
south  hillside  where  considerable  grading  was  done  in  preparing  the 
land  for  irrigation.  The  growth  of  the  different  varieties  is  fairly  uni- 
form, but  varies  somewhat  because  of  the  uneven  character  of  the  soil 
resulting  from  grading.  The  average  height  of  peach  trees  in  their 
fourth  year  was  4f  feet.  A  large  number  of  varieties  blossomed  in 
1913  but  only  a  few  set  fruit,  as  the  blossoms  were  destroyed  by  frost 
on  April  23.  The  slow  growth  of  these  trees  is  to  be  attributed  to 
their  exposure  to  the  sun  and  wind  and  to  the  infertile  soil  on  which 
they  are  located. 

Methods  of  plaiting  strawberries. — To  test  the  four  common  field 
methods  of  planting  strawberries,  namely,  the  double  hedgerow  sys- 


tern,  the  single  hedgorow  system,  the   matted-row  system,  and  the 
liill  Bystem,   an   experiment    has   been   conducted   f< >r  three  yea 
Plants  of  the  Clark    '  lark's  Seedling)  variety   were  planted  in  Sep 
tember,   1910,  on  newlj   graded  land,  one-eighth  of  an  acre  being 
planted  by  each  method.     Table  l\  shows  the  number  of  plants  on 
each  plat  and  the  average  yields  of  t\\<>  cro] 

T mm i    I \       s  and 

I 


Double  bedgti 

Hill  svvi.-ni .... 


I.   HHI 


The  production  of  fruit  in  relation  to  tlir  area  of  laud  occupied  l>\ 
each  plant  is  in  favor  of  the  single  hedgerow  Bystem,  l>ut  the  heaviest 
yield  per  acre  was  obtained  from  the  double  hedgerow  planting. 
Thf  hill  system  of  planting  is  the  most  economical  to  handle,  as  the 
plants  are  kepi  apart,  which  facilitates  removing  runners  and  keeping 
out  weeds.  The  small  growth  of  plants  and  light  yield  of  fruit  in 
this  experiment  are  attributed  to  the  infertile  condition  of  the  soil. 

Promising  varieties  of  strawberries.  Of  tlie  7  1  strawberry  varieties 
under  trial,  those  named  in  Table  V  have  given  the  best   results. 

Tvbik  V.   -D  md  fruiting  and  vu 


•  fruit 

yield  jht 

1  878 

\;  '-.i  .' 

\!  • 

Miller                                

1     Hill 

Iprfl  20.       luni 

Cl.irk                                                                                           

Although  far  inferior  in  point  of  yield,  the  Clark  is  valuable  on 
account  of  its  early  maturity  and  superior  -hipping  quality.  The 
other  varieties  are  rather  soft  and  inferior  for  marketing.  The  Texas, 
Kansas,  and  Parson  can  he  shipped  successfully  to  local  market-. 
wherries.  The  following  varieties  of  gooseberries  were  grown 
in  1913:  Downing.  Industry,  Josselyn,  Oregon,  Pearl, Smith,  Victoria, 
and  Houghton.  Houghton  and  Smith,  red  varieties,  and  the  Victoria, 
a  white  variety,  have  proved  the  most   hardy  and  productive. 


8 

Grapes. — Of  the  few  varieties  of  grapes  that  fruited  in  1913,  the 
Wbrden  is  far  superior,  as  it  is  a  vigorous  plant  and  produces  abun- 
dantly a  fruit  of  very  high  quality.  The  Diamond,  Agawara,  Catawba, 
Campbell,  and  Concord  are  promising  varieties.  The  American 
varieties  appear  to  be  well  adapted  to  the  conditions  on  the  project 
on  account  of  their  late  blossoming  and  adaptability  to  light  soils. 
The  quality  of  the  fruit  is  very  good,  being  sweet  and  highly  fla- 
vored, and  the  fruit  matures  early. 

On  account  of  their  requiring  winter  protection  and  a  long  warm 
season  to  mature  their  fruit  successfully  and  from  their  susceptibil- 
ity to  crown-gall,  the  Viniferas  (California  grapes)  are  not  as  well 
adapted  to  the  district  as  the  American  varieties.  Both  do  well,  how- 
over,  and  their  production  should  be  extended. 

GARDEN  AND  TRUCK  CROPS. 

Garden-frame  experiment. — An  experiment  was  carried  on  to  deter- 
mine the  value  of  garden  frames  in  starting  tender  vegetables  in  the 
field  before  danger  of  frost  is  past.  The  experiment  included  egg- 
plants, watermelons,  and  cantaloupes.  Half  the  frames  were  cov- 
ered with  burlap  and  the  others  with  glass.  Fresh  horse  manure 
was  put  under  some  of  the  burlap  and  glass-covered  frames  to  fur- 
nish a  small  amount  of  heat  and  as  a  fertilizer.  Fifteen  hills  were 
planted  under  each  of  the  four  conditions.  Table  VI  shows  in  detail 
the  results  of  this  experiment,  and  figure  2  shows  the  frames  placed 
in  the  field. 


Table  VI. 


Results  of  the  garden-frame  experiment  at  the  Umatilla  Experiment  Farm  in 
WIS. 


Willi  manure. 


Crop. 


Under 

glass. 


Under 
burlap. 


Without  manure. 


Under 
glass. 


Under 
burlap. 


Eggplants: 

Number  of  hills  developed. 

First  ripe  fruit 

Number  of  fruits 

Weight 

Watermelons: 

Number  of  hills  developed. 

First  ripe  fruit 

Number  of  fruits 

Weight 

Cantaloupes: 

Number  of  bills  developed  . 

First,  ripe  fruit 

Number  of  fruits 

Salable  fruits 


.pounds. . 


.pounds. 


7 
Aug.  15 

23. 5 


July  29 

18 

194 

15 

Julv  24 

138 

37 


Aug.  20 

33 

16.5 


Aug.  11 

10 

100 


6 

Sept.  12 

7 

3.5 

9 
Julv  30 

17 
131 

IS 

Julv  21 
80 
9 


0 
0 

9 

Aug.  3 

11 

102 

6 

Julv  30 

16 

6 


The  results  of  this  experiment  show  that  the  covering  of  glass  and 
the  use  of  manure  under  the  seed  and  plants  are  of  distinct  value. 
The  eggplants  did  better  with  the  burlap  covering  and  manure  than 
with  the  glass  covering  without  manure,  while  the  melons  each  gave 


bettor  results  under  the  l'1u>>  and  without  manure  than  with  the  bur- 
lap  covering  and  manure.  The  results  suggesl  i1  the  value  of  u 
glass  covering  and  a  deposit  of  fresh  manure  under  hills  of  eggplants, 
watermelons,  and  cantaloupes,  (2)  a  less  marked  value  of  manure  for 
watermelons  and  cantaloupes  than  for  eggplants,  and  (3)  the  value 
of  manure  under  eggplant  hills.  The  use  "I  glass  and  manure  in 
starting  these  crops  in  the  field  before  danger  of  frost  i-  past  appears 
to  be  advisable,  or  al  least  worthy  of  trial. 

Eggplants.  -Three  varieties  of  eggplanl  were  grown  in  1913.  This 
i-  the  third  year  this  crop  ha-;  hern  produced  "li  the  experiment  farm. 
A  heavy  yield  of  fruit  of  good  quality  was  obtained,  of  the  varieties 
grown,  the  Black  Beauty  and  N'i'w  York  Improved  are  considered 
the  best,  i'ii  account  of  their  heavier  production  and  the  more  uniform 
size  and  shape  of  fruit.     The  increased  demand  for  this  crop,  which 


Qarden  (r  iiin-s  u-~.il  .ii  the  1  ui  i'iII  1  1  rperimenl  I  inn  m  1913  to  determine  ttn-ir  ralue  m  |t<>- 
tecttng  tender  planta  from  fro--t     Young  plants  were  protected  from  injury  against  4  degrees  offin 

lht\s»>  fr.im 

grows  well  on  the  Umatilla  project,  warrants  more  extensive  produc- 
tion. Some  difficulty  in  Belling  will  be  encountered  for  a  time,  but 
tlii--  will  l>e  greatly  diminished  when  it  is  known  that  good  eggplants 
are  being  produced  in  the  district  and  markets  are  established. 

Potatoes.  -The  l  t  varieties  of  potatoes  grown  in  l.u:5  to  determine 
their  comparative  value  are  the  American  Wonder,  Burbank.  l'.aih 
Ohio,  Early  Rose,  Factor,  Green  Mountain,  Irish  Cobbler,  Mechanic, 
Netted  Gem,  Peachblow  (.rod1,  Pearl.  Rural.  Somers,  and  LJp-to-Date. 

The  highest  yields  obtained  were  at  the  following  rates  pep  acre: 
American  Wonder.  1  l_\4  bushels;  Netted  Gem,  133  bushels;  Pearl, 
I  bushels;  and  Early  Ohio,  l  16  bushels. 

Peanuts.  The  yields  of  peanuts  in  1913  were  at  the  following  rates 
per  acre:  African.  28.  \  bushels;  .bimbo  (large  seed  of  Virginia  .  26 
bushel.-;  Spanish.  10.6  bushels;  Valencia,  10.2  bushels;  and  Virginia 
(Virgin'm  Bush,  or  Virginia  Runner),  8  bushels.     An  average  yield 


10 

of  peanuts  in  a  commercial  growing  district  is  30  bushels  per  acre. 
The  standard  weight  per  bushel  for  Spanish  is  •'!()  pounds;  for  Vir- 
ginia, 22  pounds. 

The  yield  of  African  peanuts  obtained  in  1913  at  the  experiment 
farm  compares  favorably  with  the  average  crop  yield  in  commercial 
peanut-growing  districts.  However,  the  cost  of  production  is  higher 
on  irrigated  land,  on  account  of  the  higher  cost  of  land  and  the 
greater  amount  of  labor  required  to  grow  the  crop.  The  season  at 
Hermiston  appears  to  be  too  short  to  mature  a  full  crop  of  peanuts, 
as  has  been  shown  in  each  of  the  three  years  of  this  test.  The  com- 
mercial production  of  peanuts  on  the  project  is  not  feasible  with  the 
varieties  used  in  the  Southeastern  States,  but  the  results  of  the  above 
experiment  demonstrate  that  they  can  be  successfully  grown  on  a 
small  scale  and  for  home  use. 

Corn. — Seven  varieties  of  corn  were  grown  to  determine  their  value 
for  grain  production  and  for  silage.  The  yields  in  pounds  per  acre 
of  cured  grain  and  stover  combined  were  at  the  following  rate-: 
Stowell's  Evergreen,  5,683;  Pride  of  the  North,  5,073;  Disco  White 
Dent,  4,146;  Learning,  2,974;  Minnesota  No.  13,  2,717;  Stanford 
White  Flint,  2,593;  and  Minnesota  No.  23,  1,891.  The  average  yield 
of  the  seven  varieties  was  3,582  pounds  per  acre. 

All  the  varieties  but  Stowell's  Evergreen  were  thinned,  leaving  two 
stalks  to  the  hill.  The  best  combination  of  grain  and  stover  pro- 
duction was  obtained  with  Pride  of  the  North,  which  produced  a 
large  quantity  of  stover  and  a  high  yield  of  grain.  On  account  of  its 
heavy  yield,  it  is  suitable  for  grain  production  and  also  for  silage,  as 
a  high  percentage  of  grain  is  desirable  in  silage  corn.  From  the 
present  knowledge  of  corn  varieties  for  light  soils,  it  appears  that  this 
is  one  of  the  very  best  and  that  it  is  a  very  desirable  variety  from 
which  to  select  seed  and  build  up  strains  that  are  better  adapted  to 
the  locality. 

SOIL-FERTILITY  EXPERIMENTS. 

To  determine  the  best  and  most  economical  method  of  increasing 
the  fertility  of  the  soil  on  the  project,  which  in  its  virgin  condition 
is  very  low  in  fertility,  several  experiments  are  being  conducted. 
One  line  of  work  seeks  to  determine  the  value  of  commercial  fertili- 
zers and  the  other  to  determine  the  rapidity  with  which  green-manure 
crops  will  build  up  the  soil  and  increase  its  crop-producing  power. 

Commercial  fertilizers.-  The  commercial-fertilizer  experiment  which 
is  being  made  has  not  progressed  far  enough  to  warrant  comparisons 
between  the  various  fertilizers  used.  Fertilizers  containing  nitrogen 
and  organic  matter  have  stimulated  the  crop  growth  on  the  land  to 
which  they  have  been  applied,  indicating  that  the  addition  of  these 
materials  is  of  considerable  benefit.  Chemical  analyses  show  that  the 
soils  of  the  district  are  low  in  nitrogen  and  organic  matter,  and  the 


II 

increase  in  supply  of  these  material    can  he  expected  t"  increase  the 
vigor  of  orops.     No  cons  Is  ten  1  increases  in  crop  yield  have  a 
resulted  from  the  application  "f  potash  or  phosphatic  fertilizers. 

dm  a  manuring.  Land  on  which  two  or  three  crops  of  hairs 
vetch  have  been  grown  and  plowed  under  hows  a  marked  improve- 
ment in  the  physical  condition  of  the  soil  and  in  • 
power.  The  lateral  ipread  of  water  through  the  Boil  i-  much  more 
rapid  and  extensive.  Irrigation  becomes  less  troublesome,  from  the 
reduced  amount  of  washing  and  greater  rapidit)  with  which  the 
water  can  be  handled.  This  work  demonstrates  the  value  of  nitrog- 
enous and  organic  fertilizers,  such  as  nitrogen  tankage,  table  manure, 
and  leguminous  green-manure  crops,  all  of  which  produce  a  decided 
increase  in  con  grow  t h  on  land  to  which  they  are  applied  at  the  ex- 
periment farm. 

GREEN-M  VM  RE  CROPS. 

A  number  of  crops  arc  being  tried  at  the  experiment  farm  to 
determine  their  \aluc  for  use  as  green  manure  to  increase  the  fer- 
tilit\  of  the  soil. 

Green-manure  crojw  can  be  groM  n  as  \\  inter  eo\  er  crops  or  summer 

shade  crops.      When  winter  C0V6T  Crops   arc  grown    the  land   can    be 

devoted  to  a  salable  crop  in  the  summer. 

Three  varieties  of  vetch  spring  or  common  vetch  (Vicia  saliva  , 
scarlet  vetch  (V.  dasycarpa},  and  hairy  vetch  (V.  viUosa — have  I. ecu 
tried.  V.  sativa.  winterkills  and  is  not  desirable  for  fall  planting. 
V.  dasycarpa  is  fairly  hard-  .  but  doe-  not  produce  as  heavy  a  crop 
as  V.  viMosa. 

Of  a  large  number  of  crops  grown  to  determine  their  value  for 
greon  manure,  hairy  vetch  (Vicia  viUosa)  has  been  much  the  best. 
(Sec  6g.  3.)  ft  should  be  sown  in  August  or  September  at  the  rate 
of  15  to  25  pounds  of  seed  per  acre.     By  allowing  strips  of  the  first 

CTOp   to   mature,  the  ground   can    he   re-ceded    by   scattering   the   1111- 

thrashed  Beed-bearing  plant-  over  the  field  and  working  them  into 
the  soil.  \\\  this  method  the  annual  purchase  of  expensive  Beed  i> 
avoided.  That  \\\\<  method  i-  practicable  was  demonstrated  by 
the  results  obtained  on  the  experiment  farm  in  1913. 

Several  trials  have  been  made  with  Canada  field  peas,  One  with  BOJ 
beans,  and  three  with  BWeet  clover.  It  ha-  been  demonstrated  that 
these  crops  can  hi-  grown  to  advantage  in  the  spring  and  summer. 
Field  peas  should  he  sown  early  in  March  at  the  rate  of  loo  pounds 

per  acre.  Sweet  clover  can  he  -own  at  any  time  during  the  irrigating 
aeason  at  the  rate  of  20  pounds  per  acre.  If  it  i-  planted  during  April 
Or  early  May.  a  crop  can  be  plowed  under  as  green  manure  at  the  close 
of  the  first  summer.  If  the  planting  is  done  later  than  May.  compara- 
tively little  growth  can  be  obtained  before  the  following  year. 


12 

Soy  beans  were  tried  in  1913  and  promise  to  be  a  very  good  summer 
green-manure  crop.  (See  fig.  4.)  At  no  time  during  their  growth 
could  nodules  be  found  on  the  roots,  so  it  is  probable  that  they  will 
do  better  if  inoculated  with  the  proper  culture  of  bacteria. 

Crimson  clover  has  been  tried  in  both  spring  and  summer  without 
success.  The  fall-sown  crop  grew  slowly  for  a  time,  but  did  not  sur- 
vive the  winter.  Spring-sown  plants  grew  fairly  well  during  cool 
weather,  but  when  warm  weather  came  they  soon  died  out,  evidently 
from  the  effect  of  heat,  as  the  land  was  kept  moist  by  irrigation. 

A  number  of  experiments  were  begun  in  the  fall  of  1913  to  deter- 
mine (1)  the  proper  amount  of  hairy  vetch  (Vicia  villosa)  seed  to  sow 
to  insure  a  good  crop  of  green  manure,  (2)  the  most  desirable  propor- 
tions of  rye  and  vetch  seed  to  sow  in  mixtures  used  for  cover-crop  pur- 


Fig.  3. — Vetch  (  Vicia  villosa)  and  rye  in  field  Cla,  Umatilla  Experiment  Farm,  May  10,  1913,  showing  a 
heavy  growth  of  this  mixed  crop,  which  was  sown  in  September,  1912. 

poses,  (3)  the  effect  of  sowing  hairy  vetch  in  the  fall  without  irrigation, 
and  (4)  the  value  of  hairy  vetch  as  a  seed  crop  and  whether  the  seed 
can  be  successfully  harvested.  The  results  of  these  experiments  will 
not  be  known  until  the  summer  of  1914. 

ORNAMENTAL  TREES   AND   SHRUBS. 

The  tests  of  ornamental  plants  have  shown  a  number  of  very  de- 
sirable individuals  to  be  worthy  of  recommendation.  Hydrangea 
paniculata  and  Spiraea  prunifolia  are  very  hardy  and  desirable  shrubs. 
Privet  (Ligustrum  vulgare)  and  Russian  oleaster  (Elaeagnus  angusti- 
folia)  are  hardy  and  desirable  for  hedges  and  windbreaks.  Three 
varieties  of  Tamarix,  T.  gallica,  T.  germanica,  and  T.hispida,  are  de- 
sirable hardy  plants  which  attain  heights  of  6  to  10  feet.  The  Ameri- 
can elm  (TJlmus  americana),  the  white  or  silver  maple  (Acer  sacehari- 


13 

num),  iumI  tlic  sycamore  (PlaUtnux  occidentali*)  are  promising  trees  for 
shade  and  ornamental  purposes.  The  Rockj  Mountain  ailver  cedar  is 
i  \n\  attractive  and  apparently  hardy  evergreen.  The  western  yel- 
low pine  i /'in us  ponderosa)  and  tin-  Scotch  pine  /'.  sylvestrv 
very  hardy  and  give  promise  of  being  valuable  f<>r  ornamental  and 
windbreak  purposes. 

IRRIGATION   METHODS. 

Considerable  work  1ms  been  done  on  the  farm  bo  determine  the 
best  methods  of  handling  water  in  irrigating  different  crops,  and 
observations  have  been  made  on  methods  in  practice  on  the  project. 
Math  succeeding  year's  work  on  the  farm  and  observations  made  of 
irrigation  practices  on  the  projeel  emphasize  the  importance  (1)  of 
using  short  irrigation  furrows  ranging  from  LOO  to  200  feel  in  length; 
c_M  of  making  irrigation  furrows  from  20  to  30  inches  apart;    (3)  <>f 


•..J.*-.'  », 

Flu.  i     Soy  beans  in  field  Clb,  \  o  timent  Farm,  September  15, 1913, si  ry  growth 

without  imxulai  ion.     These  beans  are  a  ]  I  nmorcroponacr" 

thi'ir  ability  to  withstand  considerable  drought. 

using  fairly  shallow  furrows,  well  opened,  to  facilitate  the  flow  of 
water;  (4)  of  running  water  for  but  a  short  time  in  one  place,  BS 
losses  soon  occur  from  deep  percolation;  (5)  of  the  use  of  a  small 
amount  of  water  for  each  irrigation,  Bince  the  storage  capacity  of  the 
soil  is  very  low;  (6)  of  the  frequent  application  of  water  to  maintain 
an  adequate  supply  for  plant  growth,  as  the  Bmall  quantity  that  it  is 
possible  to  store  in  the  soil  is  rapidly  removed  by  plant  action,  evapo- 
ration, and  percolation;  (7)  of  using  a  huge  stream  of  water  while 
irrigating,  to  hasten  the  operation  and  diminish  the  loss  from  deep 
percolation  that  results  from  allowing  the  How  to  continue  too  long 
in  one  place,  and  to  diminish  the  labor  of  applying  the  water;  is  of 
furrowing  alfalfa  fields  for  irrigation  after  each  crop  i>  harvested; 
and  (9)  of  the  use  of  flumes,  concrete-lined  ditches,  or  pipe  lines  for 
conveying  the  water  to  the  fields,  to  prevent  the  heavy  losses  in  the 
distribution  of  the  water. 


14 

Where  water  is  allowed  to  stand  for  a  long  period  over  porous  soil, 
heavy  losses  result.  The  water-holding  capacity  of  a  soil  and  the 
rapidity  with  which  water  moves  through  it  vary  with  the  size  of 
the  particles  composing  the  soil.  The  coarser  the  soil  the  lower  ita 
capacity  to  hold  water,  and  consequently  the  more  frequent  irriga- 
tion it  requires.  The  frequency  of  irrigation  necessary  for  a  coarse 
soil  varies  with  its  storage  capacity,  which  diminishes  as  the  size  of 
the  particles  increases. 

COMMUNITY  BREEDING  OF  DAIRY  CATTLE. 

It  is  recognized  that  one  of  the  best  methods  of  increasing  the 

productivity  of  the  soils  of  the  project  is  to  feed  live  stock  on  the 

farms  and  apply  the  manure  to  the  land.     With  this  point  in  view,  a 

large  numher  of  farmers  on  the  project  have  recently  started  in  the 

dairy  business.     To  assist  the  settlers  in  this  enterprise  and  to  aid  in 

improving  the  quality  of  the  dairy  cattle,  the  Oregon  Agricultural 

Experiment   Station  maintained   a  highly  bred  Jersey  bull   at   the 

experiment  farm  in  1913.     During  the  year  free  service  was  furnished 

for  122  cows. 

EXTENSION  WORK. 

The  staff  of  the  farm  devotes  considerable  time  to  extension  work 
on  the  Umatilla  and  neighboring  projects.  In  1913  a  number  of 
lectures  were  given  on  subjects  relating  to  the  agricultural  problems 
of  the  district,  and  frequent  trips  were  made  over  the  project  to  inves- 
tigate difficult  conditions  which  the  farmers  had  encountered. 

Four  pruning  demonstrations  were  held  during  the  year,  at  which 
the  pruning  of  apples,  peaches,  and  grapes  was  discussed.  Two  of 
these  demonstrations  were  held  at  the  experiment  farm.  One  was 
held  on  March  1,  when  the  pruning  of  apple  trees  was  demonstrated, 
and  the  other  on  October  31,  to  discuss  pruning  and  covering  grapes. 
Two  demonstrations  were  held  at  Stanfield,  the  first  on  March  13, 
when  the  pruning  of  apples  and  peaches  was  demonstrated,  and  the 
second  on  November  10,  when  the  pruning  and  covering  of  Yinifera 
grapes  were  discussed.  An  experiment-station  field  day  was  held  on 
September  9,  at  which  over  200  farmers  were  present.  All  the  experi- 
ments in  progress  were  fully  explained  and  the  results  discussed.  In 
all,  321  farmers  were  brought  together  during  the  year  for  outside 
demonstration  work. 

Approved: 

Wm.  A.  Taylor, 

i  'hief  of  Bureau. 
Junk  3,  1914. 

o 


WASHINGTON  :  GOVERNMENT  PRINTING  OFFICB  :  1914 


UNIVERSITY  OF  FLORIDA 


3  1262  09216  2600 


